Why is getting rid of stuff you no longer need so hard? I mean, you don’t even use it, right?? It might even be broken! So then why do we hold on to these trinkets or broken remnants of our memories?

Sometimes it’s easier to keep it rather than take any action on it. It’s easier to simply not make a decision about what to do with the item, so we just tuck it away somewhere and maybe plan to get back to it later.

Sometimes life IS too busy to give stuff it’s due time…like a broken toy that would be easy to fix, just not right now. So, we hold on to it because ‘one day’ we’ll have the time to fix it, so off it goes to the workshop for the ‘one day’.

Sometimes the actual memorabilia are more meaningful than the photographs. It’s something tangible that reminds us of a different time in our lives, or reminds us of who we used to be before something in life changed us into who we are now.

Sometimes it’s really just deciding to do it later, rather than dealing with something now. If there is an area in the house that tends to pile up with mail, recycling or garbage for example. The area is cluttered simply because we chose to dump it, rather than take the time to deal with it properly.

Sometimes it’s a gift from someone we still care about, or once cared about. It’s hard to get rid of it even though it adds nothing to our lives. It may feel like we’re tossing away their friendship by tossing the item.

Sometimes it comes down to quality or name brand of an item. I mean, really, if it’s a good quality item, why get rid of it. But the quality means nothing if we’re not actually going to use it!

Sometimes it’s items from a hobby that life forces us to put on hold. It’s hard to justify getting rid of it all if it’s still a passion to pursue.

Sometimes we keep useful things. Things we can reuse or things we may eventually have to buy again if we do get rid of them. So, it seems like a waste to get rid of it now.

Instead of asking yourself ‘what can you get rid of?’, or ‘what do you want to keep?’, ask yourself these questions:

What do you want from your house or your space? What do you want to see? How do you want to feel when you walk into a room in your house?

Often, we don’t even see our own clutter as clutter because all of the stuff has been with us for so long it’s now just part of the house, or part of the back ground. It’s not really until we start feeling the weight of the clutter that we even take action. Even then, sometimes you need to feel the weight of your stuff for years before enough is enough! If your room makes you feel overwhelmed, or like it’s all too heavy; see what happens when you lighten it, even just a bit. Imagine the feeling of opening a well organized, functional and efficient drawer! Imagine feeling the pride when you open the closet. Seek those feelings!!

Sometimes, starting from visualizing how you want to feel in a certain room or closet is enough to really look deep into your clutter and realize it doesn’t suit you anymore. Try on something else!

Thanks for coming home!